Male/female telescopic couplings are commonly used in fluid conduits such as the fuel line of an automotive vehicle; e.g., such a coupling is commonly found between the fuel line and the fuel filter. A characteristic of the coupling is a male component having a circumferential bead near the end and which fits telescopically into a female component of larger diameter. To prevent inadvertent separation a retainer clip is used to bridge the coupling. A prior art retainer clip comprises two sets of opposed resilient fingers spaced apart by a rigid integral bridge section of sufficient length that one set of fingers grasps the male component near the bead and the other set of fingers grasps the female component on the opposite side of the coupling. The coupling is, therefore, trapped between the two sets of retainer fingers and cannot be uncoupled.
Typically the clip-on retainer is attached to the female coupling component sometime prior to its engagement with the male coupling component; in fact, the combination of the fuel line with the female coupling component and the clip-on retainer may be shipped and handled several times before final assembly. During this time it is possible for the prior art clip-on retainer to become separated from the fuel line subassembly, thus requiring a supplementary supply of clip-on retainers at the assembly site.